Hadronization and strangeness production in heavy-ion collisions

The hadronization process of a quark matter possibly formed in relativistic heavy ion experiments at CERN SPS and RHIC is addressed in the framework of a non-equilibrium approach using hadron formation rates for effectively massive quarks and gluons. After a brief review of the relevant thermodynamical concepts consequences of string formation on the hadron composition are investigated in the transchemical quark fusion model and in a molecular dynamical simulation of the semiclassical chromodielectric model. (75 refs).